-Well, well, look at all these colorful creatures coming our way!
Wrath licked his lips as he observed the man who appeared to be a Gold Dragon.
-It's like choosing from a variety of bead ice cream flavors.
He muttered nonsense about wishing there was a cool Blue Dragon among them as well.
'This one's different from the other lizards.'
Raon furrowed his brow at the powerful aura emanating from the Gold Dragon.
'I'm not sure if I can win in this state.'
The energy of the blonde man before him was far superior to the Black Dragon he had fought initially. Even at full strength, he couldn't guarantee victory, causing his heart to race with tension. As Raon regulated his breathing and tried to regain his focus, Sterin, who had fallen to Sepia, approached.
"I'm sorry..."
Sterin wiped the blood trickling from his mouth and exhaled heavily.
"Perhaps it's truly time for me to go. My body won't move as I wish anymore."
He kept muttering apologies, unable to lift his head.
"You saved Sepia, but I..."
"It's alright."
Raon turned around and shook his head calmly.
"We'll just have to cut them down here."
He spoke more confidently, not only to deceive Sterin but also his own emotions.
"Yes, let's stop them here."
Sterin, seemingly encouraged by Raon's words, clenched his fist until his knuckles turned red.
"That one's name is Matirus. He's the strongest dragon in the Gold clan, except for the current Lord."
Sterin's hand trembled as he gripped his bow, warning that Matirus was a dangerous being even among ancient dragons. Judging by the blood covering his entire body, it seemed he had fought desperately.
"From now on, I'll fight in the front. Guardian, please support me from behind."
"Raon..."
Sterin bit his lip as he watched Raon advance towards Matirus with a smile.
'You...'
Raon had asked for help, not for Sterin to fight. It was consideration, treating this war as his own and not wanting to burden Sterin. Despite having expended much energy and stamina fighting two dragon-level opponents and that snake-masked human, Raon still thought of Sterin first. This made Sterin's heart burn with emotion.
"Of course! I'll protect your back no matter what!"
Sterin accepted Raon's consideration and raised his bow fiercely. He no longer felt the pain of torn muscles and ripped flesh. Only the determination to protect his grandson's disciple, even at the cost of his own life, welled up within him.
"Even after taking such a beating, you still don't know your place."
Matirus snorted and shook his head.
"No matter what you do, the World Tree and Sepia will disappear today."
As he flicked his finger, black flames erupted around the World Tree. It was the high-level magic Hellfire. Matirus not only created a wall of flames but also summoned large monsters from subspace to pressure the elves at the World Tree.
"Aaaaagh!"
"M-monsters here too!"
The elves who saw the suddenly appearing monsters sat down in fear. With almost no combatants left, they all retreated, pushed back by the flames and monsters.
"Matirus!"
Sterin shouted as he saw the flames starting to burn the roots of the World Tree.
"Why are you going this far!"
"You started it. It's not strange to destroy the seeds of a race that will become our future enemy, is it?"
Matirus tilted his head as if wondering why Sterin was asking such an obvious question.
"The World Tree doesn't belong to the elves alone! You know very well that it affects the entire continent!"
"It's to eliminate the vermin that ruin the world. That much sacrifice is necessary."
He shook his head calmly, as if not feeling the slightest shame.
"Matirus..."
Sterin gritted his teeth as if disgusted.
-These lizards are becoming more petty as time passes!
Wrath frowned, saying he wanted to jump out and rip out Matirus's teeth himself.
"Ah, so..."
Raon looked down at Matirus and nodded slightly.
"You're burning the World Tree to become a lapdog for the Five Demons? You, who call yourselves the world's mediators?"
He sneered and waved his hand up and down.
"From now on, I'll have to rip out the tongue of anyone who calls dragons mediators or regulators. No matter how I look at it, you're nothing but shabby con artists."
Raon raised one eyebrow, saying they were worse than the lizards crawling on the ground.
"...I'll have to shut that mouth of yours first."
Matirus raised his fingers with veins bulging on his forehead. Light condensed at his fingertips, becoming golden arrows that flew at an invisible speed. Raon raised a Fire Wall with the Heavenly Drive to block the light arrows shot by Matirus.
'It's heavy.'
Even using the Fire Wall, his fingers trembled from the weight. Though thin and small, the power seemed no less than the sword strikes of Transcendents.
"That was just the beginning."
Matirus said it was merely a greeting as he created and shot multiple light arrows like the one he had just fired. Despite the increased number, their power and speed seemed to have grown even stronger.
'I have to block them.'
Raon gritted his teeth as he saw the light arrows flying towards his vital points. Although blocking itself was disadvantageous, he couldn't dodge to protect Sterin, whose mobility had decreased. Raon wielded dual swords with the Fangs of Insanity and Blizzard Sword Art to deflect the light arrows Matirus had unleashed.
His tired shoulders and forearms seemed to tingle, but he bit his tongue and cut down all the light.
"An opportunity."
The Green Serpent nodded slightly and disappeared into the dark clouds. He appeared silently on Raon's left side and thrust his blade condensed with wind.
"..."
Although Raon had detected the Green Serpent's movement, he didn't react and focused only on erasing Matirus's light.
"It's over."
Just as the Green Serpent's blade was about to pierce Raon's waist, a blue-tinged arrow flew from behind. The arrow shot by Sterin not only deflected the Green Serpent's sword but also pierced through the light arrows rushing in from the right.
"How dare you."
Sterin lowered his eyebrows as if to say it was absolutely forbidden.
"I look forward to your continued support."
Raon nodded without even looking back.
"Green Serpent. You take care of the old elf. I'll kill this human."
Matirus assigned Sterin to the Green Serpent while forming a golden sphere above his right hand. The Orb of Light. It was a device that brought magicians' fantasies into reality.
"That seems best for now."
The Green Serpent nodded and stepped back slightly. He disappeared from sight, wrapped in wind.
"Raon. Don't worry about me, focus on Matirus."
Sterin calmly drew his bowstring, saying he could handle a youngster in a helmet.
"Of course."
Raon said he would trust him and then swung Frost Snap towards Matirus. The blade of frost shot forward from the Heavenly Drive, falling towards Matirus's neck. Just as the frost blade and Heavenly Drive were about to behead Matirus, a golden flash erupted from the orb he had created, blocking both attacks of Frost Snap simultaneously.
"How crude."
As Matirus snorted, the light that had blocked the sword strikes split into dozens of strands and fell towards Raon's vital points. They were faster and more powerful than the light arrows he had shot initially.
"You approached on your own, so you'll have no space to dodge."
As he said, there were too many lights, and they were too fast. It seemed impossible to block all of them.
"Then..."
Raon raised the Heavenly Drive, twisting his lips into a smile.
"I'll just erase them all."
He raised a barrier of flames above the blade of the Heavenly Drive. The flames that seemed to cut through the air long engulfed Matirus's light. Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation. Dance of the Golden Flame. The silk of flames that originally devoured darkness ate away at the corrupted regulator's light, causing a powerful explosion.
Raon didn't miss the opportunity created by the explosion of the Dance of the Golden Flame and charged towards Matirus.
Both physically and mentally exhausted, he needed to end the fight as quickly as possible. He stepped on the Supreme Harmony Steps in mid-air and thrust Rimmer's sword from Matirus's blind spot.
"I knew you'd come like that."
Matirus nodded calmly, as if he had been waiting for this.
"Humans always charge in like wild boars."
As he flicked his finger, the orb condensed like a small bead and then expanded, creating a tidal wave of light. It was such a terrifying wave of light that the sky of Sepia looked like a golden sea.
Raon swung the Heavenly Drive and Rimmer's sword diagonally, striking down like lightning. Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation. Flame and Ice Unification. He drew the Silver Sword Dream, cutting through the tidal wave of light with waves of fire and frost.
The reddish sword strike that scattered like a dream sliced through Matirus's neck as it passed. But no blood spurted out. He had already retreated after setting up a light clone.
"Hmph!"
Matirus raised his right hand above his head, and the orb elongated, forming a brilliant sword of light.
"Sacred Light Sword."
He brought down the light sword he had created with both hands. It wasn't swordsmanship, but its power was no less than a Transcendent's ultimate technique. Raon drew the Crimson Slash against the light sword strike pouring down like a waterfall. Sparks burst into the sky one after another as the sword of flames and the sword of light clashed.
'He's continuously condensing mana.'
Raon narrowed his eyes as he saw the light sword withstanding the Crimson Slash with sheer quantity of mana.
'I can use this as an opportunity.'
While imbuing the Crimson Slash with the essence of the Subtle Sword and Quick Sword to the extreme, he rotated his left wrist holding Rimmer's sword. White waves erasing the golden light. It was the White Shadow Slash, a counter-technique that erases the opponent's martial arts. The moment the White Shadow Slash erased Matirus's sword of light, Raon added explosive power to the Crimson Slash and aimed for Matirus's heart.
Just as the flames of the Crimson Slash were about to slash Matirus's chest, the scattered light became a shield and blocked the sword strike. Once again, Matirus had blocked the attack by pouring out a massive amount of aura. If nothing else, the amount of mana he could utilize was overwhelmingly superior.
'No, that's not the only problem.'
It wasn't just the amount of mana or magical skill that was the issue, but experience. Matirus had overwhelmingly more combat experience than the Black Dragon or Red Dragon he had faced earlier. Even though Sterin was exhausted, Raon could understand why he had been pushed back.
"You certainly have the skill to kill those two."
Matirus nodded as if acknowledging this.
"But it doesn't make much difference."
He created a new Orb of Light in his left hand, saying the game was over.
"Let's see how long you can hold out."
"Hold out?"
Raon twisted his lips into a smile as he looked at the shimmering orb.
"It would be faster to calculate how long your neck will stay attached."
* * *
"B-black fire! It's Hellfire!"
"There are monsters too!"
"W-we have nowhere to run..."
The elves who had entered the sacred ground could only retreat helplessly, terrified of the slowly approaching Hellfire and monsters.
"Is there no choice but to die?"
"Someone will protect the World Tree, right?"
Some elves sat down right there, waiting for approaching death as if they had already given up on life. At that moment, when no one dared to step forward and everyone was giving up, Siyana threw off her blanket and stepped forward.
From her fingertips emerged the highest-grade water spirit in the form of a unicorn and the highest-grade wind spirit in the form of a butterfly.
The spirits, reading her heart, sliced through the monsters with blades of wind and pushed back the approaching black flames with blue rain.
"Lady Siyana?"
"What are you all doing?!"
Siyana turned around without even accepting their thanks. For the first time, she looked at her kin with anger in her eyes.
"This is Sepia! And our sacred ground!"
Siyana pointed to the sky with gritted teeth.
"Outsiders are risking their lives, so why are you looking for guardians and giving up on life? Do you think the World Tree would be happy if you just wait quietly for death?"
She stomped her foot fiercely, telling them to come to their senses.
"We are the only ones who can protect our land!"
Siyana shouted for them to move on their own, revealing eyes that shone with determination.
"B-but we can only summon low-grade spirits."
"I can only shoot ordinary arrows..."
"Even if we want to fight, we can't..."
"That's no excuse."
Siyana shook her head firmly.
"Now that we're cornered here! Whether it's low-grade spirits! Throwing stones! It doesn't matter, we must fight!"
She shouted for them to fight with their lives on the line and leaped into the approaching horde of monsters. The earth spirit she summoned for the third time split the ground, swallowing the monsters.
"Huff..."
Siyana exhaled roughly and clutched her head. Having continuously blocked the poison throughout Sepia while commanding spirits, her mental strength had reached its limit. She felt dizzy, as if she might collapse at any moment.
"Until the end!"
As she bit her lip and tried to stand up, young elves came forward and summoned small water spirits. The spirits, as young as the children, sprayed water like from a bladder. While one alone was insignificant, the combined streams managed to push back the flames a little.
"Hmm..."
Seeing this, the other elves also bit their lips and came forward, each summoning a spirit to fight the monsters. Though fear was present, no one gave up or retreated.
"Don't worry. I won't let anyone die before me!"
Siyana raised her head, saying they should all fight together.
"Well said, princess!"
Martha emerged from the flames and sliced the neck of an ogre approaching the World Tree.
"Even if others help, you have to protect your own home!"
She nodded, saying she liked Siyana's thinking.
"She's not a princess, but the next Guardian. This isn't a kingdom!"
Burren shook his head as he cut down a horde of orcs rushing in from the right in one sweep.
"Yes. Siyana. Well done."
Runaan patted Siyana's head while pushing back the black flames that burned even when wet with frost.
"N-next Guardian! Stop being so disrespectful!"
Burren's lips trembled, flustered by Runaan's action.
"Phew, it's rougher here..."
Dorian shook his head, muttering that Sepia was more of a hell.
"No, it's the safest where the Division Leader is."
Krein licked his lips as he looked at Raon fighting in the sky.
"Everyone, stop the chatter and focus."
Burren looked briefly at the Blade of Requiem placed at the base of the World Tree, then shook his head.
"We can't let our master's homeland disappear!"
"Let's go!"
With Martha's shout, the Light Wind division's counterattack began.
* * *
Raon bit his lip as he blocked the relentless barrage of light.
'There's no opening.'
Seeing that Matirus didn't give any chance for a swordsman to approach, Raon realized his initial assessment was correct – Matirus had excellent practical experience and combat sense.
'No, it's not just that he has more experience...'
My movements are off. Beyond mental or physical fatigue, my body feels heavy. Even though I can see them, cutting or blocking the light magic isn't easy. Raon narrowed his eyes as he cut through the waves of light rushing in like clouds.
'Wait a minute, come to think of it...'
Sterin had also said that his body condition was much worse than usual, making it difficult to face Matirus. Even if he was tired from sparring with Raon, it was strange for a Transcendent to say such things.
'Let's check.'
Having trained his entire life, he knew his own body better than anyone. He decided to determine whether it was really fatigue or an external problem. Dozens of light clusters spewed from the orb Matirus had created, aiming for all of Raon's vital points.
Raon stepped to the left using the Supreme Harmony Steps. As he tried to escape the net of light, for a moment his body felt heavy and slow.
He thought he could escape sufficiently, but due to his heavier body, he couldn't dodge and had to block the net of light instead.
"Huff..."
Raon wiped the blood trickling from his mouth and shook his head.
"What have you done to me?"
Just now, his body and aura movements had become slightly sluggish. It was clearly an external effect, not internal.
"So you noticed."
Matirus exhaled in surprise.
"You're certainly different from that old elf."
He nodded as if impressed.
"Stop mumbling and answer my question, lizard."
"I have no reason to tell you."
Matirus frowned in annoyance and flicked his finger. The orb floating in the air rotated fiercely, spewing light fragments in all directions. It was as if all the stars in the night sky were falling at once.
Raon swung the swords in his hands with a time difference. As he was about to deflect all the approaching lights using the dual sword technique he had learned from Sheryl, it happened again.
'Again.'
The light magic that he thought he could reach sufficiently passed faster than the Heavenly Drive and pierced his side. More than the pain, he realized how it was done. Raon unleashed the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation and Glacier to the extreme. After erasing all the surrounding light with an explosion of heat and cold, he raised his head.
"Now I understand."
Raon narrowed his eyes as he looked at Matirus standing at the edge of the sky.
"It's gravity."
At first, he thought Matirus might have placed a curse on his body, but that wasn't it. Matirus had tampered with the gravity of the space Raon stood in, slowing down his body and aura movements. Strangely, he wasn't manipulating gravity with mana, which is why it took so long to figure out.
"Good senses."
Matirus nodded, readily acknowledging it.
"While your ability to finely control gravity is indeed remarkable, now that it's known, it holds no significance."
Raon twisted his lips as he looked at Matirus.
"Is that so?"
As Matirus sneered, his body was enveloped in magnificent light. A massive body casting shadows in the sky. The ancient dragon he had seen when first entering the Great Forest was now looking down at him from the heavens.
[The fun is over, let's end this now.]
As soon as Raon heard Matirus's calm voice, his body lost control and fell to the ground. It wasn't subtle gravity manipulation anymore, but Transcendent-level strong gravity control. He couldn't move his body at all. Raon coughed up blood as he crashed into the ground of Sepia, just like Sterin had fallen initially.
"Kuhk!"
Sterin, who had been fighting the Green Serpent, also couldn't overcome the gravity and fell next to Raon, rolling on the ground.
[You're greatly mistaken.]
Matirus let out a long sneer.
[Gravity manipulation is an ability I gained when I became an ancient dragon. That's why it's not handled with mana. If subtle control is possible, exerting strong force is even easier.]
He shook his head, saying he had only wanted to watch the human's futile struggle.
[Light has no mass, but it is affected by gravity. I'll kill you without you being able to move a finger.]
Matirus raised his head as he pressed down on the area around the World Tree with gravity.
"Argh..."
"I-I can't stand up!"
"C-can't move my hands or feet..."
The Light Wind division swordsmen and elves who had been gaining the upper hand couldn't do anything and were unable to move from their spots.
"Kuhk..."
Sterin also coughed up black blood as if he had run out of strength. The backlash from pushing his aging body too hard made him suffer more than the others.
"So this is how it ends."
The Green Serpent, bleeding from his shoulder, presumably injured by Sterin, licked his lips. Matirus, while pressing everyone down with gravity, opened his massive maw. Golden radiance began to spew from his pitch-black throat. It was a breath attack, and it seemed he had gathered all the breath he could use in a day.
Raon bit his lip as he watched the golden breath gathering in the sky.
'What should I do?'
Due to the increased gravity, it was difficult to even lift his hand holding the sword, and raising his aura wasn't easy either. He didn't know how to block that breath, which was stronger than those of the Black Dragon and Red Dragon.
'Is there anyone who can help...'
Raon looked at Wrath.
-Hmm, I guess I have no choice. This king will step in.
Wrath nodded without hesitation, saying he would help even though his spirit body hadn't fully recovered.
'Wrath. You...'
As Raon bit his lip and looked at Wrath, it happened. The leaves of the World Tree, which had been bending and breaking under the gravity, spread a verdant green light as if coming back to life. The wind rising from the Blade of Requiem, touched by that light, reached Raon's shoulders and back.
"Ah..."
Raon bit his lip as he smelled the somehow nostalgic scent of the wind. It felt as if Rimmer was gripping his shoulder, assuring him he could do it.
-Manifestation is impossible at present. This king will push his energy...
'It's okay.'
Raon shook his head at Wrath.
-What? What do you...
'I'll do it.'
He raised his knee, heavy as a thousand pounds, and straightened his waist.
'It's time for me to act now.'
He had always received help. Survived thanks to Rimmer. Rescued by Glenn. Wrath manifesting to overcome crises. Besides these, he had been able to live as his current self thanks to the help of countless people.
To wait for others' help, unable to protect people even after reaching Transcendence, would be throwing away his own value and future.
Today, and right now, was the time to walk on his own feet and hands. Matirus, filled with killing intent, brought down the Sacred Light Breath towards the World Tree. The shockwave from the breath tore the sky and lifted the ground it didn't even touch, crumbling it.
Raon gripped the Heavenly Drive and Rimmer's sword tightly as he faced the breath that seemed to fill not just his vision, but the entire world.
He spun the Ring of Fire to the extreme, opening the realm of transcendence.
'What I learned in reaching Transcendence wasn't just the aura of nature.'
The reason he had touched Transcendence at the last moment was human emotions. He imbued the two swords with the sensation of that moment when he had comprehended all human emotions – joy, anger, sorrow, and pleasure – and became a being that surpassed humanity while remaining human.
He stomped his foot as if causing an earthquake. He imbued Rimmer's sword with the flames of the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation and wrapped the Heavenly Drive with the cold of Glacier.
The aura rising along the elegant sword tips raised a golden dawn as if heralding a new era. Sword Domain. Heaven's Rift. The golden aura rising like wildfire clashed with the Sacred Light Breath pouring down with gravity.